Inspired by Philadelphia's most famous exports, these homemade vegan cheesesteak sandwiches are seriously crave-worthy and come together in just 30 minutes. The meaty texture and umami-rich flavor of portobello mushrooms pair well with caramelized cooked onions, bell peppers, and crispy whole grain French bread. You’ll want to bookmark this “cheese” sauce; while it tastes rich, it’s made with chickpeas and doesn’t have a lick of cholesterol in it. Turmeric provides the yellow hue, and nutritional yeast, mustard powder, and onion powder do a remarkable job of mimicking the flavor of cheese. To round these scrumptious sammies out into a full meal, add a garden salad.
Tips
Optional oil: This is a Forks Flex Recipe, which means it includes a small amount of optional oil. If you include the oil, you'll add approximately 30 calories, 3 g total fat, and 1 g saturated fat per serving.
For more inspiration, check out these tasty ideas:
By Nancy Macklin, RDN ,
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (optional, <a href="#h-tips">learn more</a>)
- 8 oz. fresh portobello mushrooms, sliced
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 medium green bell pepper, sliced
- 1 medium red bell pepper, sliced
- ½ teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 to 4 tablespoons low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 cup canned no-salt-added chickpeas, undrained
- ⅓ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ to ¾ cup unsweetened, unflavored plant-based milk
- 1 12-oz. loaf whole wheat French bread, sliced horizontally and toasted
Instructions
- For oil-free: In an extra-large skillet, combine the mushrooms, onion, bell peppers, thyme, and paprika; cook over medium 5 to 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally and adding broth, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, as needed to prevent sticking. (If using oil: In an extra-large skillet heat oil, then add the mushrooms, onion, bell peppers, thyme, and paprika. Cook over medium 5 to 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. If needed, add broth, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, to prevent sticking.)
- Meanwhile, for “cheese” sauce, in a food processor combine the next seven ingredients (through cayenne pepper). Process until smooth, gradually adding ½ cup of the plant milk. Pour into a small saucepan and cook over medium 5 minutes or until hot and slightly thickened, adding enough of the remaining plant milk to reach desired consistency.
- Spoon mushroom mixture over French bread and drizzle with “cheese” sauce.
Made it last night for my Valentine and she LOVED it as did I!
My “cheese” came out more like hummus, but the taste was great, so I spread it on the bread and then topped it with the main ingredients. So flavorful and satisfying, will make again!
First off all, I love the FOK recipes and have a few on rotation in my kitchen.
This is a very clever idea for a recipe. However, I made it and it just wasn’t good. I doubled the recipe, could this be it?